Kyle Martino and his vision for US Soccer

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Kyle Martino, a former United States national team midfielder and NBC Sports' Premier League broadcaster, discusses his campaign to replace longtime incumbent Sunil Gulati as president of the United States Soccer Federation, during an interview Thursday Jan. 11, 2018, in New York. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

After a long four months, the US Soccer Presidential Election race is finally on its eve.

Eight candidates are vying for the role of being the federation’s president, hoping to bring change after a disappointing 2018 World Cup Qualification, which led to the US missing the World Cup for the first time since 1986.

Kyle Martino, a former US Men’s National Team Player and analyst for NBC Sports, put his name in the ring after some deliberation. The 36-year-old talked about the impact of missing the World Cup.

“Missing the World Cup might feel catastrophic, but it’s not,” Martino said via phone. “It’s heartbreaking and there are major short-term implications but if we focus too much on that we will miss the actual problem. The actual problem is, missing a World Cup is a symptom of systemic issues within the federation where the focus has evolved too much over the years as the federation has become more financially successful, it’s moved toward a top-down approach where the majority of the investment and focus is on the 1%, the top of the pyramid. We haven’t modernized as a federation to create an organization that serves its members.”

NWSL is the top soccer league for women in the United States. Unfortunately, even with the successes the US Women’s National team has in terms of popularity, the league has struggled with its sustainability. The Boston Breakers, which is one of the most prestigious women’s soccer clubs in America, recently had to fold. Martino states the pattern the league is going in mirrors the process MLS went in the early 2000s, and the contraction of a team is not necessarily a bad thing.

“Sometimes contraction feels really bad but it is a positive if it improves the quality of ownership,” Martino said. “So sometimes you have to have a club fail if there was an ownership that was bringing down, or dragging and becoming an anchor.

The contraction of the Breakers’ has led to youth programs losing funding, an issue Martino says needs to be taken care of.

“One issue with Boston Breakers collapsing, or folding, is they fund a lot of youth programs,” Martino said. “So one focus right now needs to be to make sure the three youth programs that are affiliated continue to get their funding and those players still have a place to play. I’m sure that resolution will be found but it’s something that needs to be focused on right now.

A hot topic in the race has been the issue of promotion and relegation. Only two candidates have come out stating that they want to ‘open the pyramid’ to other clubs, creating a system unheard of in American sports. Eric Wynalda, an analyst at Fox Sports, has stated his desire to implement an open pyramid and so has Martino, who has a plan stated in detail in his Progress Plan.

“I believe in opening the system,” Martino said. “And I believe it’s a future we need to move towards. I know fans would like it tomorrow but I know that’s not possible for a myriad of reasons, so my plan is really the only specific one I’ve seen someone put forward that is achievable. I’m excited to, once I’m in office, investigate ways to make that possible and create a mechanism that will improve the quality of the product. That will grow the grassroots abilities because every market will have professional teams with upward mobility. And it will be a more compelling sports story. I look forward to getting together with all the stakeholders to figure out how we can make that happen. “

One of the leagues mentioned in his promotion/relegation plan is the NASL, a league that has sued the US Soccer Federation. The league has claimed that it can not run as a D3 league and asked to be sanctioned as D2. The USSF gave NASL the D3 status, creating a spiral of teams leaving the league, and leaving some players unemployed and contemplating retirement.

“There are players who have their dream of playing professional soccer who don’t have a club anymore,” Martino said. “We just got done talking about that with the Boston Breakers. They did a dispersal draft to put those players on other teams and NASL players are kind of floating in the wind and trying to find homes. That’s not a good thing. We absolutely as a federation should want all of our professional leagues to thrive.”

The region of North Texas is very talent-rich in terms of soccer. Young players such Weston McKennie (Little Elm) and Keaton Parks (Plano) are currently having success in Germany and Portugal, respectively. There have been many players produced in Texas, including one notable US Men’s National Team player.

“I think of Clint Dempsey for sure,” Martino said. “I think of some of the amazing players who have come out of that state. Clint and I played together for the US team and I’m a big fan of his I just love watching him play even when I was playing. His story is an incredible one of a kid who had the potential to play for an elite team, I think it was the [Dallas] Texans, that was a few hours away from Nacogdoches, but actually as a teenager was playing co-ed soccer in Nacogdoches and still became one of the best players we’ve ever seen.”

Martino also raved about the FC Dallas Academy, which has talked about as one of the best academies in MLS.

“I think FC Dallas, with all their homegrown players and the amount of kids that are coming through that system, are showing what’s possible if you make sure that you’re out there in the community and you grow opportunities for the kids,” Martino said.

The issue of pay-to-play is prominent in North Texas, where many youth clubs play week in and week out. The issue is not the concept though, Martino says.

“Look pay-to-play has become a pantomime villain,” Martino said. “It exists in every sport and it exists in every country but ours is the most expensive. That’s the reason it’s a problem. And the reason it’s so expensive is that there is incredible market confusion where there are many players, or many organizations in the states, where the states have been defined. “

Martino’s solution to the issue is the concept of solidarity payments, which have been apart of other leagues in the world. They’re payments to a club that developed the player, which incentivizes the coach and club to produce the best players. It would also help cut down costs, with one player being able to fund many more. A counter-argument to the payments have been US labor laws, but Martino foresees no issues.

“Every state has different legal laws that you have to go through but I have yet to come across a law that keeps us from being able to do that,” Martino said. “I think some of these laws are red herrings."

Coaching is a key part of a players’ development. However, the prices, accessibility, and the opportunity cost of getting coach licenses is high. Martino takes inspiration from Europe with ways to help educate coaches in America.

"Our coaching license is one of the most expensive in the world and it’s offered in the fewest places,” Martino said. “Especially as you get up the pyramid. Spain, it won’t surprise anyone, has the highest level of UEFA licensed coaches and it’s the most affordable. So we can subsidize that through the budget and through the surplus, but also empower associations to be responsible for their coaching education so they can reinvest their profits into lowering the costs of that education.”

In a state where high school sports dominate, the developmental academy, and high school soccer often clash. Some players leave the DA for high school and vice versa due to the rules implemented by USSF, barring one from playing in the DA and high school simultaneously. While the DA may offer the best chance for a player to go pro, high school may offer the best chance for a player to have fun. It creates a conflict between a player and their parent in terms of what to do.

“Well first you grow the membership,” Martino said. “There are at late bloomers and there are people that aren’t ready for DA that may become great players. You can’t pick winners at a young age. And then you understand that high school soccer and college soccer, that’s part of the development pathway. And you can’t make that decision for kids. Some of my greatest soccer memories, and I’ve played every level... some of my greatest soccer memories are still my high school days. You can’t take that away from kids. If they decide that’s where they want to develop, then that’s where they should develop.”

On Saturday the next US Soccer President will be crowned after months of debate and discussion. Martino hopes it will be him and wants to hone in on these issues before they get too bad.

“If we don’t focus on that threat [of systemic issues],” Martino said. “I’m worried that could metastasize and become something that kills the soccer culture that we’ve been building.”